The Salmon Come Home Again

Here in the Puget Sound, we measure our well-being by the state of the salmon. No one knows this better than Native Americans, for whom stewardship of the salmon fishery is not just high-minded environmentalism; even more than an economic necessity, it's a theological imperative.

Katelyn wrote about this yesterday, the tribal salmon celebration at Waterfront Park, next to the Seattle Aquarium. It's the focus of the 16th annual Salmon Homecoming this weekend, complete with salmon bake ("Salmonchanted Evening"), where $9 buys you a portion of wild salmon, an ear of corn, salad and Indian fry bread.

But here's something else: another cultural celebration that combines salmon and art. Further north along the waterfront, at Olympic Sculpture Park, the program is titled "The Salmon Return." On Saturday afternoon, half a dozen salmon-related exhibits and projects including a presentation titled "If Salmon Could Talk."

If all that's too serious for you, then wait until the weekend of October 4th and the high-budget hjinks of Issaquah Salmon Days. There are those who would argue, on the other hand, that Salmon Days have more to do with corporate "spawnshorship" than with salmon. Certainly no high-minded theology.